He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
The big question is how much can Todd Boehly tolerate with Chelsea now in the bottom half of the table
Graham Potter’s Chelsea was accused of looking “miles off” their trophy-winning level of the past 20 years, as Marc Cucurella faced accusations from Jamie Carragher that he “looked like he didn’t want to defend”.He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
Chelsea’s torrid run of results continued on Thursday night as they succumbed to a 1-0 home defeat against Manchester City, who closed the gap at the top of the Premier League to five points. He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
With just one win in their last eight league games, Chelsea has dropped into the bottom half of the table and is as close to the relegation zone as they are to the top four – and an alarming 19 points off Arsenal. He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
Despite a strong first-half showing, Chelsea faded as Pep Guardiola’s second-half substitutions paid off with Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez combining for the only goal of the game, largely thanks to errors from goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga and £60 million defender Cucurella. He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
Their performances did not escape the notice of Carragher, with the Telegraph Sport columnist particularly scathing of the former Brighton defender. He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
“I wasn’t happy with Cucurella right throughout that second half until he came off,” Carragher said on Sky Sports. He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
“When we talk about the price tag… he can’t defend. And when you say someone can’t defend… I think if someone doesn’t want to defend, it’s probably worse. He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
“It looked to me like he didn’t want to defend. When I see defenders diving in all the time, it makes me think they don’t want to defend.”He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
During the live coverage, Carragher added: “I’ve been questioning Cucurella in this second half. He doesn’t want to defend. Certainly 1 vs 1. We’ve seen that three or four times.”
On Arrizabalaga’s failure to stop Mahrez, Carragher added: “Can the goalkeeper do more? I think he can. I’m pretty certain he could’ve done more.”He can’t defend Marc Cucurella and Graham Potter in the firing line as Chelsea faces a harsh reality
Former Premier League winner Chris Sutton questioned how long Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly would persist with Potter as manager if results and performances did not improve quickly, putting pressure on the former Brighton coach to turn his ship around.
Former Premier League winner Chris Sutton questioned how long Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly would persist with Potter as manager if results and performances did not improve quickly, putting pressure on the former Brighton coach to turn his ship around.
“Did Chelsea play well? I thought they did in the first half but in the second half they were overrun,” Sutton told BBC Five Live.
“Is this the Chelsea that the fans want to see where they are applauding them for their effort? Chelsea, over the past 20 years, has been a team who have won big trophies and they look miles off it.
“The question is how much can Todd Boehly tolerate? Chelsea goes to City at the weekend in the FA Cup; if they go out there, I just wonder whether they will view this as a job too big for Graham Potter.
“It was a difficult pre-season for Chelsea. There were noises coming out of it that Thomas Tuchel wasn’t happy about. He ended up leaving, and it’s been difficult for Potter coming but this is a Chelsea team that simply isn’t doing well enough.”
Sutton added: “They’ve spent a fortune and you feel for Potter in terms of key players being out tonight: [Mason] Mount, [Ben] Chilwell, [Reece] James, [Raheem] Sterling having to come off early on.
“But it isn’t good enough. I don’t think anybody expected Chelsea to win this game tonight, they are not the team they once were, and how long will Todd Boehly give Potter? It’s so difficult to see where this is going.”
Sutton also addressed the unhappy response from substitute Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang when he was hauled off before full-time. Aubameyang was required to come on for Sterling in the fifth minute of the match after England forward suffered an injury, but Potter’s decision to replace the Gabon international with teenager Lewis Hall in the 68th minute left Aubameyang shaking his head as he trudged off.
“I thought Aubameyang was hopeless in truth, offered very little,” said Sutton. “The Aubameyang substitution is really telling, it’s embarrassing. He’s been hauled off and rightly so.”
